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Periventricular White Matter

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology

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Definition

Periventricular white matter refers to white matter located immediately adjacent to the fluid-filled ventricles of the brain.

Current Knowledge

Periventricular white matter is composed of bundles of myelinated nerve fibers (axons). These bundles appear “white” due to the heavy myelination of these fast-conducting fiber tracts, which convey motor and sensory information to their targets within the spinal cord and cerebrum, respectively. Periventricular white matter tracts are adjacent to the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) filled cavities of the brain: the two lateral, single third, and single fourth ventricles.

Nomenclature

Periventricular white matter within the cortex is named according to the lobe of the brain in which it is located: frontal, parietal, temporal, or occipital; for example, the periventricular white matter within the frontal lobe is referred to as frontal periventricular white matter and surrounds the anterior horn of the lateral ventricle. The parietal...

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References and Readings

  • Berne, R. M., & Levy, M. N. (2000). Principles of physiology. St. Louis: Mosby.

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  • Fix, J. (1995). Neuroanatomy. Baltimore: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

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  • Haines, D. E. (2000). Neuroanatomy. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

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  • Haines, D. E. (2004). Neuroanatomy: An atlas of structures, sections, and systems. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkens.

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  • Kandel, E. R., Schwartz, J. H., & Jessel, T. M. (1991). Principles of neuroscience. Norwalk: Appleton & Lange.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Neurosurgery, Virginia Commonwealth University, Box 980631, Richmond, VA, USA

    Christina R. Marmarou

Authors
  1. Christina R. Marmarou
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Christina R. Marmarou .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Richmond, Virgin Islands, USA

    Jeffrey Kreutzer

  2. Kessler Foundation , West Orange, New Jersey, USA

    John DeLuca

  3. Suite 200 , Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, USA

    Bruce Caplan

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Marmarou, C.R. (2017). Periventricular White Matter. In: Kreutzer, J., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_350-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_350-2

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-56782-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-56782-2

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